The Stars of Eden
by Pixelframe
Summary: One year after the Beast planet vanishes from the Cluster, the war planets find themselves in a state of peace, but for how long? As old and new conflicts start to emerge from within, a looming threat awaits them in the depths of space.
1. The Paths the Bind Us

_A/N: This is a story request set a while after season 2. When it comes to epic story writing, I... take some time between chapters just so you know. I guess you would if you're waiting for me to finish Ghost Planet... x( ... I will use all of my willpower to finish this one. All original characters will appear in this including numerous OCs. So with that note, enjoy the read._

_Rating K+_

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><p><strong>The Stars of Eden<strong>

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><p><strong>One. <strong>**The Paths that Bind Us**

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><p>The boy of Fire looked to the night sky and gazed in awe as planet Sand hung against the landscape of hundreds of stars. It appeared fixed in position, but the large world was moving alongside with its powerful world engines. Its yellow sand stirring in its atmosphere created a vibrant corona that made it look like a glowing ember. Like his Quarrior figurines, he wished he was older so he could wear cool body armour and go exploring into space. His mother had said wearing a helmet would extinguish the flame on his head, but he didn't let that dwindle his hopes.<p>

"Hey, _matchstick._"

A tough looking Rock boy crossed his arms and glared in disapproval.

"Go play with _your_ action figures."

The Rock boy's expression turned hopeless and he sighed. He knelt down beside the boy of Fire and joined him in the pretend battle.

"You can play with them a little longer. Seeing as how you lost your home and everything, I guess I'll play the grown up and be a nice guy."

The boy from Fire looked at him wide eyed and smiled.

"Flint! You playing with lava hair?"

Two other boys of Rock approached, their faces were lit with teasing grins as they snickered to each other. A large blue haired man of Rock made his presence known as he put a little more weight into his steps along the dirt path. He eyed the two boys steadily, and their snide expressions quickly vanished. They stood like toothpicks as the man passed them by.

Graveheart shook his head and returned his attention back to Pyrus who was walking by his side. He could tell that small scene hadn't bothered the young prince. If it had, he wasn't going to show it. Graveheart looked around as the people of Fire went about their evening routines and social gatherings. Most lived in Rock alloy homes. Some were able to build makeshift ones using scraps of metal from planet Fire. Large braziers lined the walkway and were placed in front of home entrances. Hot coals were thrown on the ground in an effort to regain some of planet Fire's environmental appeal. Graveheart found himself hopping like a child in an attempt to avoid stepping on them. In the distance, Fire's flyable throne room had nestled itself on a plateau at the side of a mountain. Pyrus looked sullen, as if the village was something he had little faith in.

"Your people are making progress," Graveheart said with a grin. He wiped away sweat from his forehead.

"They've accomplished a lot in a year." His voice was toneless. "But you and I both know we can't remain on Rock forever."

Graveheart's grin faded. After that one climactic day when the Beast was teleported to an unknown fate, Jade was the first to offer Pyrus and his people a part of her planet. Other world leaders had offered as well, but planet Rock had the most adaptable environment. Pyrus had been the only one reluctant to accept the offer, but everyone insisted it was the most logical decision. Looking back now, Graveheart could only feel guilty for not respecting him as a ruler.

"They're still searching for a planet in its volcanic age. Unfortunately, none they've found have world engines."

"I appreciate what everyone is doing for my people." Pyrus paused. His voice grew quieter. "But I don't know if I can do this anymore. I'm too young, too inexperienced to rebuild my people to the greatness they once had. One of the council elders would be a wiser choice." He looked up at the man of Rock who stared back saddened. "My people may _look_ like they're carrying on with their lives, but I know how they really feel. They're disappointed because I couldn't find them a home of their own. I've dishonoured them. We can't depend on the Alliance to carry us on its shoulders _anylonger_." The anger in his last words was a blow to Graveheart's chest. "My people need a planet where they can be free to grow and prosper independently. World engines be damned."

Graveheart gazed ahead and breathed deeply. "You know, Cryos told me how much you are becoming like your father."

"Did Cryos really say that?"

He smiled and nodded. "You're out here every day with your people, helping them to rebuild their lives on a completely different world. You've shown them your bravery, not to mention recklessness, when you fought against the Beast. If those aren't good qualities of a leader, then maybe you'd feel more comfortable letting Femur take over. I hear he's out of the job." He looked around as men and women greeted them with nods of recognition. "No matter how many times you tell yourself you're no good Pyrus, the fact is, you _are_ doing good for others and that's really all that matters." He warmly smiled and smacked Pyrus on the back, making him stumble forward. "Besides, no way we are leaving you to rot on some Maker forsaken planet in the middle of nowhere."

Pyrus curled a bemused smile. Graveheart wasn't sure his words were enough to heal his concerns, but just getting him to crack a smile, something he hadn't seen him do in days, was rewarding enough.

_"Graveheart."_

Jade's voice grumbled through his communicator sounding extremely irritated. He hesitated to respond, not remembering anything he did in their last meeting to potentially piss her off.

_"Graveheart,"_ she said impatiently.

"Yes Jade?"

_"_Get over here. _Now."_

Graveheart remembered the fancy assembly being held to officially welcome planet Mist into the Alliance. He had only met a Mist noble briefly, but as he recalled, it was one of the most uncomfortable experiences of his life. He grinned and raised the com.

"Exchanging hooks with the emissary?"

There was silence. He glanced at Pyrus who raised his head in understanding.

_"If anyone asks Graveheart, the attack on the emissary was provoked."_

He shook his head hopelessly. "Jade, _please?_ At least _try_ and act like an empress. I'm on my way."

Pyrus stroked back the flame on his head. "Maybe I should be there."

"Judging from your last encounter with them, that... wouldn't be good."

"And I thought _we_ were the ones with the temperature."

As he and Pyrus parted ways, Graveheart took one last moment to appreciate the glow and magnificence of the Fire village around him. He smelt something strange and felt his feet start to burn. Jumping back from the hot stones, he looked down at his melted boots as if heartbroken. He shook his head, silently laughing at himself. Even with the Beast gone, he could tell the coming year was going to be paved with hardships and unexpected happenings. The most a man could do was brave them with a smirk and hope he comes out the other end with his sense of humour still intact.

**. . . .**

_*Bleep* *Bleep* *Bleep*_

_*Bloop* *Bloop*_

The Ice helmsman pointed a blue finger at a button on the Aurora's dashboard and princess Zera slapped it away.

"Don't help me. I _know_ it's that one."

The pilot shrunk back in his seat and glanced at Cryos who brought his fingers to his forehead and shook his head. Clearly, it was a mistake letting her take the helm. As a father, he had thought it was prudent considering she expressed a desire to expand her knowledge in the field of space travel. He hadn't accounted for her lack of listening skills. Worried she was going to crash the ship into the nearby planet, Cryos went to her side and laid a gentle hand on her shoulder.

Zera looked at one of the monitors. "It looks like... the surface temperature is... approximately... sixty degrees." She looked up at her father. "Is that _hot_ enough for Pyrus?"

"I'm afraid not," he said dimly. "The people of Fire need a temperature nearly double that amount if they are to live long and healthy lives."

Zera's large insect eyes gazed at the brown and yellow clouded world through the bridge windows. Slowly her eye lids lowered in disappointment. Even though she wouldn't admit it, Cryos could tell she was deeply concerned for Pyrus and his people.

"They may be a race few in number," he said. "But there's no doubting their longevity."

The bridge's sliding doors opened as the robotic woman, Tekla, walked through. Her attention was buried in a small data pad she was holding as Voxx beeped around her. Judging by her relaxed demeanour, Cryos could tell she had nothing new to tell them.

"This planet does not have them either," Tekla said plainly. "After scanning the star system planet Mist resides in, and the systems we have observed thus far, I can only conclude that if a system has one planet with world engines, all of its other worlds must have them, and most, if not all, have life."

Cryos gazed at her. "If what you say is true, then in order to find a planet for the people of Fire, we must look in already inhabited worlds." He frowned. This realization had already crossed his mind before. Pyrus would only be leading his people into a similar situation: having to share a world with another race.

Tekla smiled and tucked her data pad away. Her thoughts seemed to linger on another matter as she folded her arms.

"And how is the Alliance's new flagship coming along?"

Cryos rolled his eyes and turned his head. He was expecting this. "Apparently, Femur wants to give it green dorsal fins to enhance its... _Bone appeal_. There were several other superfluous modifications he wanted to implement but I'd rather not mention them for fear of making my headache any worse." Tekla hid a giggle behind her hand. "I sent him back a transmission saying I'd rather have Sternum decide on planet Bone's additions to the ship. If he's as much of an architect as he is a ruler, then there's hope."

"So I assume Rock has completed _its_ modifications?"

Cryos blinked slowly. "Yes. While working with Rock soldiers was a little more degrading than I could bear, the battle moon canon schematics were finally integrated into the ship's weapon systems. Five canon ports is... a tad excessive, but, you don't argue with Jade when she wants her way."

Zera stepped forward and crossed her arms. "_Ahem_. Of course, _nothing_ as impressive as father's nanonite ice shield invention."

Cryos humbly smiled. "Yes, well, as much as I admire your enthusiasm Zera, there is no need to make this into a competition."

Zera returned to the helm and plotted a course while her father wasn't looking. The helmsman watched her nervously.

"And what does our Tek representative have in store?" Cryos asked. "You've been working hard on something, I'm sure."

Tekla consulted her data pad for a moment. "It is still in its experimental phase. If you wish," she started excitedly, "we could try implementing it when we return."

His interest in this new technology was high, but like all of her inventions, they had a tendency to blow up.

"Perhaps... it would be wise to test the device separately."

"As you wish," she said as if Cryos had passed on a great opportunity. "Have you decided on a name yet?"

"The ship is supposed to symbolize the union of the planets and our liberation from the Beast. Naturally, The Freedom came to mind. Graveheart suggested The Vindicate, which is a fine name as well. I'm finding it most difficult to decide between the two."

"I can see this ship is very important to you. In any case, The Freedom has my vote."

With the addition of planet Mist to the Alliance, the new flagship was certainly going to be one of the most unique and adaptable crafts in the galaxy. Ever since Cryos and Graveheart formed the Alliance, building a ship like this had been a dream. Something that would set aside racial differences. Younger generations could see the ship and be reminded of the history of the war planets.

Princess Zera grinned in self accomplishment as she directed the Ice ship from the planet's orbit, admittingly, with the help of her co-pilot. She was just calibrating new coordinates when she saw a bright purple star twinkle in the distance. Squinting, she realized it was growing larger, rapidly. It was heading directly at her. By the time the helmsman noticed it too, the purple ball of light had zoomed over the Aurora, missing its hull by a few hundred meters.

Zera blinked as she studied the monitors. "That was no star," she said as her father and Tekla came to her side. "I believe, we are under attack."

Cryos glanced at the helmsman and firmly nodded. In response, he activated a low pitched beeping alarm that sounded through the ship. The Aurora's hull luminesced for a split second as its shields energized. Cryos placed a hand on the dashboard as he gazed out into space. There was no sign of what had fired on them. There were only a couple planets left in the star system to visit, but he highly doubted they supported life. Everyone was quiet and still as they waited for whatever it was to reveal itself.

"I'm detecting something," the helmsman said, "but its energy reading is extremely weak. I can't be sure what it is."

Cryos studied the motionless stars. This strange occurrence was definitely a welcoming change in pace. Spending days hopping from one lifeless planet to another was starting to weigh on his spirits.

"Bring us closer to the point of origin."

Tekla brought her knuckles under her chin. "A warning? Perhaps they do not like visitors in their system."

"Perhaps," Cryos pondered wisely. "It could also be a distress flare."

Zera looked up at him and tugged his arm. She seemed more bothered by the situation than anyone. "What if they're hostile?" she asked in a frightened royal tone. "What if it's the Beast returning to finish us off?"

Cryos smiled. "Doubtful my dear. In any case, we take precautions when we aren't sure." As he spoke, the sound of propulsion thrusters sounded as a small probe flew from one of the launch ports.

After a long moment, the probe started to send back telemetry. Tekla read the information displayed on the monitor and her eyes slowly widened.

"What? What is it?" Zera asked.

"_By the matrix_, it is not possible." She looked at Zera and then at Cryos. Forcefully, she took control of the helm and directed the ship to where the probe had gone at full impulse. Her expression was tense, as if she was holding back premature joy.

Cryos' mouth was ajar as he tried to figure out what could have prompted such behaviour from Tekla.

"Tekla," Cryos said as he stood beside her and studied the information she read. His eyes widened. He now understood her reaction. "This could only mean-"

"That it is a Tek ship. Another survivor of my home world."

Zera spun around with wide eyes and a gaping mouth. A wave of both happiness and scepticism swept through Cryos.

"How is this possible? I thought your ship was the only one to escape the Beast planet."

"I do not know," she replied with unaltered glee. "I am hailing them now." She opened a com link and took a steady breath before she spoke. "Tek vessel, this is princess Tekla of planet Tek. Please respond."

There came no response and Cryos exchanged glances with his daughter. Tekla gazed hopefully into the blackness of space. Her palms pressed down heavily on the dashboard. As the Aurora drew closer to the vessel's location, the ship' sensors picked up weapon's fire. Dim flashes of purple and red could be seen in the distance.

"_No._" Tekla's expression turned panic-stricken.

Cryos could see some kind of ship taking heavy fire from another.

"_Quickly,_ we must defend him!"

"Tekla." Cryos reached out to her with a hand but she had already activated the Aurora's weapons and seemed intent on obliterating the attacking ship.

Cryos' eyes widened as a silver, single winged ship came into view. As far as he could remember, it was the same design as Tekla's ship. Dark blast marks charred its hull, as smoke and vapour emitted from its damaged engines. It was floating at an off angle, appearing defenceless. Turning sharply and heading straight for the Aurora was a grand and ferocious looking ship. Its pilot seat was nestled in a similar way as an Ice fighter but instead of two wings, it had long protruding spikes evenly spaced around the hull so it looked like a star with many points. Blood red painted its metal. The side edges of the cockpit were black, the paint curving demonically like the solar flares of a sun. Even though it was small in comparison to the Aurora, Cryos had no doubt, there was more than confidence that backed up its pilot's course.

Cryos eyed the Ice helmsman. "_Hail them_."

"Don't waste your breath," Tekla said angrily. "I will not stand by and do _nothing_ like before. _No_." Her brows angled deeply and she clenched her fists. "I will _not_ let any more of my people suffer that fate again." She targeted all of the Aurora's turrets at the incoming ship and fired.

The demon ship emitted a flurry of red lasers that impacted all of the missiles before they had even gotten close to its hull. Tekla reared back and her eyes widened. Shock had completely frozen her. A wave of both fear and frustration swept through Cryos as he made a harsh expression to the helmsman. He knew exactly what was going to happen next. Coming from a ship with that kind of defensive capability, the Aurora was in definite danger.

"_Full power to the forward shields!_" He grabbed Zera whole and held her tightly.

There came a flash of bright red light as a boom shook the ship. The hull buckled as if the Aurora had just crash landed full speed into a planet. The helmsman flew forwards, ricocheting his helmeted head off of the dashboard. Tekla lost her footing and fell backwards hitting the back off her head hard. As Cryos crouched holding onto his daughter, it felt like the world around him was going to shake until it exploded into pieces.

Somehow finding his footing, the helmsman shouted, "Shields are _down!_"

"Activate the hyperdrive, get us away from here!"

"_No!_" Tekla's mad expression was like a sword through Cryos' body. Sprawled on the ground, she gazed at the shaking young girl in his arms. Tekla's eyes slowly closed, her head lowered.

Zera opened her eyes over her father's shoulder.

"_Look!_"

Her blue finger pointed at the Tek ship that had appeared dead in the water. Something on its hull glowed purple as if building up energy. At lightning speed, it unleashed a purple projectile that ripped through the fabric of space and collided with the demon ship's stern. Its engines exploded in a fantastic ball of fire. Everyone on the bridge stared in awe as the demon ship staggered as sparks flew from its power grid. The long red spikes that shaped it like a star, suddenly glowed yellow. It sharply turned away from the Aurora, showing its smoking and demolished impulse engines. As the tips of the star ship reached a blinding brightness, its hull stretched like it was being pulled at both ends. Like blurred laser fire, the demon ship slipped away into subspace. It was gone.

Cryos quietly breathed a sigh of relief as he gazed down at Zera's smile. He glanced at Tekla, whose reaction was a mixed one. Everyone remained silent as they found their footing. The Tek ship that floated in the distance, appeared completely without power.

"Status," Cryos said calmly, his eyes scanning the smoking consoles around him.

Sparks snapped as the helmsman attempted to probe the dashboard. "We still have main power." He put a hand to his helmet and shook as if shaking off a headache. "Casualties are coming in."

"And the Tek ship? Any life signs?"

"Life signs are weak. Secondary power still active." A beeping sound came from the console and he looked back at Cryos who breathed a sigh of relief and slowly nodded.

He activated the transmission, and a dazed looking Tek man appeared on the view screen. His eyelids weighed heavily on his gaunt face, and he carried a slash on his left cheek revealing broken circuitry. His arms propped up on the dashboard in front of him as if to keep himself from falling over. His sad, bright blue eyes lingered over the people before him. Slowly his face changed into weak happiness, an act that appeared strenuous.

"_Thank the maker_," he gasped. "I apologize. I could not warn you of the Eden vessel for it is able to scramble nearby communications." He took a moment to close his eyes and breathe deeply.

"You've nothing to apologize for." Cryos gazed at the Tek man in disbelief. "I believe it is _us_ who are in debt to you." He looked at Tekla who slowly stepped forward.

A weak smile lit the Tek man's face. "Princess Tekla," he almost whispered. "You are alive..." He recoiled at the pain in his body.

"_Please_," she urged, "you must reserve your strength."

"No," he grunted. "I must say this... Our people... they _live_."

Tekla's lips slowly parted. Her face was plastered with disbelief.

He grinned and flinched again. "_Yes._" He breathed heavily. "The... _Salvation_."

Tekla's eyes widened in recognition of the name. The Tek pilot lost his footing but was able to keep himself up by the arms.

"My people are on their way to-"

"It is... too late for me... blue one." He grinned, the weakness and finality of his words shattering Cryos' heart. He was going to die. "I..." His voice trailed away.

"_No!_" Tekla cried. "_Please, tell me, what is your name?_"

As tears fell down Tekla's face, Cryos could only bow his head and shield his daughter from the immanent moment.

The Tek pilot's mouth moved but no sound could be heard. Slowly, he stopped. The blue light faded from his eyes leaving only darkness. Tekla lowered her head and closed her yes.

"_Teksonis_," she whispered. Cryos gazed at her not understanding what she had said. " 'My name is Teksonis. The people of Tek, and our princess, will live on in salvation.'... His final words."

Cryos could not imagine the pain Tekla was feeling. After going on for so long believing she was the only survivor of planet Tek, she had finally discovered someone of her kin, only to witness him die moments later. He knew how strong her spirit was, he had seen it, but this reminder to Tekla of how she had lost her father and her planet was something Cryos himself could not bear. As he gazed down at Zera, his only daughter, he could only be grateful for the paths his life had taken. Tekla's people were alive somewhere in the depths of space and Cryos would not stop unit they were found.


	2. Flagship

_Please sit back and enjoy :)_

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><p><strong>The Stars of Eden<strong>

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><p><strong>Two. Flagship<strong>

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><p>"Forty percent system restoration."<p>

Voxx removed its connection from the Tek ship and hovered above Tekla's shoulder. It could do no more. Tekla laid a hand on the dashboard and closed her eyes. How far had the pilot come? How long was he pursued by that strange vessel? She could only imagine what he had gone through and drew about dreadful emotions within herself.

"Computer, activate star log."

A holographic image of stars appeared in front of her followed by a red string that represented the pilot's flight path. Spanning nearly four star systems, his path appeared to originate at a planet. Tekla stared at the point for a moment. There were no other planets around so it wasn't in a system. Judging by the computer data she realized it wasn't a planet at all. It was a collapsed star.

"Could this," she looked at Voxx, "be a wormhole?"

The floating computer beeped as it took a few hundred nanoseconds to scan the information. "Astrometric data inconclusive."

Tekla studied the point intensely. There was no question, she would have to travel through the black hole to reach her lost people, but she couldn't do it alone. Would her friends take the same risk?

"How go the repairs?" Cryos had to duck slightly under the ceiling as he walked up behind the pilot seat. The ship was slightly larger than a typical Tek fighter, meant for long distances, but the cargo hold was a little tight for her blue friend.

"Much of the data was destroyed in the attack, but I believe... I know where my people are."

Cryos' eyes widened. "Where?"

"On the other side of this," she pointed at a large red sphere on the hologram.

His antennae spread apart. "A sun?"

"A wormhole."

His eyes widened in awe. "Are you certain?"

"I can see no other explanation. "

She pressed a few buttons and another string, this time blue, appeared on the hologram that ran beside the red one.

"This was the alien vessel. It must have followed him through the wormhole." She slowly shook her head and placed her fingertips to her forehead. "Who knows what dangers my people face... They could be under attack, fleeing from Eden ships as we did the Beast..." Her gaze slowly lowered. "They are alone Cryos. One ship against Matrix knows what."

Cryos gently smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder. "There's one thing I've learned about your people Tekla, and it's their ability to discovery ways of surviving even when all hope seems lost." He gave a slow nod. "They will not be alone for much longer. With the Alliance's aid, we are sure to gather a force to rival this so called, Eden threat."

Tekla smiled sorrowfully. She did not know what to expect on the other side of the wormhole, but she was glad she wasn't going to find out alone.

. . .

The slimy walls of the throne room gave off a putrid smell. Glowing green lanterns made of organic matter set a gloomy exotic mood that brought Femur much needed relaxation. Slouched on the throne with an elbow on the armrest, he held a slimy fat worm above his mouth and stared into its beady eyes as if eating it would not bring him satisfaction.

He sighed. "My feet are killin me. My arms feel like they're gonna fall off. Even my teeth are too tired to chew."

He swerved his gaze to the Bone warrior who was holding a purple bubbly drink. Femur tossed the worm over his shoulder and gestured his head at the warrior. Grabbing the cup he brought it to his lips. With a loud squishy sound, the tongue like chamber door opened, revealing a large figure in the entrance standing with crossed arms. Femur choked, spitting the purple liquid in the air.

"Sternum!" Femur jumped off the throne and gave his widest smile. "Back so soon? I thought you were, ahh, busy working on the Alliance's pride and glory."

The muscled Bone warrior frowned in disgust.

Femur patting the seat. "I was just keeping it warm for yah." His brother's red eyes were drilling a hole in him.

As Sternum walked forward, the chamber guards bowed. He stepped passed Femur and slowly descended on the thrown, resting both arms at his sides. He made a relaxing sigh that caused any anger inside of him to fade away.

He held up his hand and gazed at his fingernails. "How is your training going Femur?"

"Ah, swell! After all the running, crawling, jumping," he said counting with his fingers, "... after getting beaten into green jelly... I think I'm really starting to mould into a brand new me!" He felt bitterness creep onto his tongue. "So yeah, if you _wouldn't mind_, I'd like to get off the shackle train now." His palm sliced through the air. "I can't take it anymore!"

"So soon? But you've lost so much weight."

"Really?' he said smiling.

"No." Sternum rose from the throne with returned anger. "Brother, until you have proven yourself more than the worthless, backstabbing, slimy worm you admire to be, you will _not_ step another foot into this chamber. You will _not_ appear in my line of sight again or so help me I will rip that cowardly spine from your back and be rid of Bone's _disgrace_ once and for all. Now..." He leaned in close. "_Get, out._"

Femur's instincts were telling him to smile and shrink backwards like a frightened child, but he wasn't about to let Sternum think he had won the war between them. He stared back coldly. Without a word, he turned and left the chamber. All he wanted was a little recognition for all his sacrifices made for the Alliance and he definitely wasn't going to get it staying on Bone.

. . .

Construction of the ship left missing panels in the hallways that revealed open circuitry. They didn't pose much danger unless one deliberately stuck a hand in them. The majority of the engineers working on the level were from Rock, Ice and Bone. Communication between the races had gotten better over th months, sometimes there were bursts of laughter from a good joke and engaging conversations where intelligent minds just clicked. Yet, there was still tension between the races. No one could doubt that it was growing steadily.

"As you can see, ambassador Phi," Graveheart said opening a palm to the walls of the ship, "our new flag ship contains the resources and technology from every world in the Alliance. Currently, we are installing Bone's organic propulsion engines, which would prove useful if our main engines were disabled in combat."

He looked back at the people from the Mist planet. They were long, skinny creatures with grey toned skin and triangular navy blue eyes. Their ears were their most outstanding attribute, long, the tops curving back almost into circles. White and light blue swirly gases emitted from their skin, which were really only noticeable standing in front of them. The ambassador was dressed in a long, plain grey dress bearing a symbol of three crescent moons on both pointy shoulder pads. The three Mist people accompanying him were dressed in plain grey robes. Their heads were always bowed and only rose when the ambassador addressed them. The ambassador's lips pursed slightly. He did not look impressed.

"Are you trying to kill us?" His voice was low pitched, and, despite his words, was also gentle.

Graveheart frowned slightly and exchanged glances with Jade who appeared irritated and unsurprised by the ambassador's remark.

"I don't think I quite understand what you mean ambassador."

"There is electricity running through those open conduits yes? Your engineers are using flame welders yes? The green members of your Alliance are emitting a highly toxic and offensive odour, yes? Then I must assume that you are indeed, trying to kill us."

"Uh..." Graveheart took a slow look around. "Yes- I mean no. I assure you ambassador, it is completely safe, just... as long as you stay away from the walls."

Jade buried her face in a palm.

The ambassador sighed. "Very well, man of Rock. Despite this abhorrent Alliance ceremony, I feel inclined to allow you to continue. I am rather impressed by the redundancy of systems you've implemented on this monstrous vessel, but the large canon ports on the outer hull seem superfluous and only designed to make the ship appear more, intimidating. I must tell you from my experience man of Rock, big explosions entertain the minds of children, stealth and tactics are for the wise."

Graveheart gave an awkward grin. "Your feedback is always appreciated ambassador. Perhaps you can improve on our... shortcomings, with technology from your people."

"Doubtful. My sovereign is not likely to authorize such sharing of technology."

"Yes," Jade said with bitterness. "Let's not rush into anything."

Graveheart hoped the ambassador didn't catch that. "Zuma, how about showing our guests the rest of the tour?"

Zuma slowly nodded and offered the way to the Mist people. "Please, this way."

"Hmm, a telepath?" asked the ambassador.

The tranquil beast nodded.

"Intriguing... My people have only started to develop their telepathic abilities. We can project our emotions unto others, but not words. It would be my honour if you would... practice with me, yes?"

The tour carried on with Zuma at the lead, leaving behind Jade and Graveheart.

"Well isn't he a bucket of laughs."

"I'm proud of you Jade."

"For what?"

"You know..." Graveheart grinned and Jade rolled her eyes.

"I don't know why I put up with you Graveheart. This Alliance is getting too big. I don't even think _you_ can handle it." She crossed her arms. "I cannot bar my temper much longer if I have to deal with anymore pretentious idiots."

"Come on Jade," he said with a one sided smile, "there's always going to be tension when trying to establish an alliance, you know that. It's just a matter of making compromises on both sides."

"Sorry Graveheart. I'm not compromising my sanity so you can unite the aliens of an entire galaxy." She looked to the ground, her under-bite becoming more noticeable.

Graveheart saw a glimmer of frailty in her eyes, and he knew something was wrong. "What is it Jade?"

She shot him a stone stare. "Nevermind."

He had no idea why she was acting this way. Every time he had Jade figured, something would throw him off course. He had a feeling allowing planet Mist to join the Alliance was going to do more than set frost to their relationship.

"Sir?"

Graveheart was working towards something big. He had no reigns on its future, really, he was just going with his gut, but he knew it was going to become something incredible.

"Uh, sir?"

"Huh?" Graveheart turned his head to see a blue haired Rock worker standing beside him. Sweat ran down his cheeks.

He saluted. "Trouble down in the engineering bay sir. They're having... uh, problems."

"What _kind_ of problems?"

"Something involving Fire... Ice... Bone... well pretty much everyone sir."

"Wonderful." Of course, that big future wasn't going to come without some headaches and broken backs.

"Empress Jade, Commander Graveheart."

Graveheart spun around to a helmeted Ice soldier. "What now?"

"Urgent transmission from King Cryos."

Graveheart and Jade exchanged glances. There was a chance Cryos finally had some good news to tell Pyrus and the people of Fire. "I'll take it on the bridge," he glanced at the worker, "and tell those engineers to stay frosty until I get there. We don't need an incident like the one before."

"Right."

. .

The sleek silver doors, painted with a hint of blue, slid apart and revealed a glorious room enclosed by large rectangular pieces of glass made for their incredible resistance to anti-matter explosions. Through them, Graveheart could see the colourful planets of the Alliance in crystal clarity. The bridge appeared almost complete as Ice workers busied themselves at each of the many stations. If ever there was a time to admire their diligence and craftsmanship, it was then. The colour theme was mostly made of blue and white that formed thin bands around the bulkheads in perfect symmetry. Silver panels that made the floor and system consoles were polished to a shine.

"Welcome to the bridge Empress Jade, Commander ," said a nearby worker.

Jade smirked. "You should have shown the ambassador this room, _first_."

The worker activated the transmission on his console and gave a nod. "It's a data transmission, the Aurora is still quite a distant from us."

The glass panel at the center of bridge turned black and Cryos soon appeared, his large white eyes appearing more gloomy than Graveheart remembered.

"Graveheart, I bring news... although it may not be kind you were expecting. A number if Tekla's people may have survived the destruction of their world."

Jade and Graveheart looked at each other with gaping mouths. The Ice workers followed in surprise as they all stopped what they were doing to face Cryos.

"We encountered a Tek fighter under attack by an unknown enemy. The pilot... sadly perished from his severe wounds. Tekla is... well after seeing one of her kind die before her, grief-stricken. With the Alliance's accordance, we must organize a fleet to search for the lost Tek people. When we have returned, I will fill you in on all the details. Until then, take care my friend."

As the transmission faded, Jade turned to Graveheart with wide eyes. "Unknown enemy?"

Graveheart looked to the floor. He didn't know whether to feel sorry for Tekla or feel joy that she may no longer be the sole survivor of her world. She had done so much for the Cluster, no world would hesitate to find her people.

The walls and floor shook violently and Graveheart stumbled foward. The lights on the bridge flickered until there was darkness except for the dim blue glow from the consoles. The shaking subsided and Graveheart regained his footing.

"We've lost primary power!" said the helmsman.

Jade was standing firmly with fists at her sides. "Are we under attack?"

"Yes." Graveheart cupped his face and shook his head. "By a bunch of engineers."

Graveheart sprinted from the bridge and down the dimly lit hallway. Jade followed behind. There was mass shouting and confusion as workers scrambled to figure out what was happening. He only hoped no irreparable damage came to the power core or months of hard work would be wasted. One thing was for sure, he was going to get an earful from the Mist ambassador.

. .

The engineering bay, plainly, was a mess. Wires, metal panels, strange organic matter, volcanic rock and numerous unnameable objects scattered the floors and wedged themselves in conduits.

"You fool!" hissed a man of Ice. He pointed an accusing finger at a man of Fire standing in front of him. "We all could have perished!"

"Pah!" The Fire engineer threw a hand in the air. "How do you expect to make any progress without taking a little risk! You puny insects think you are so much smarter than the rest of us when really your minds are as frail as your limbs! I don't even know why I'm here. I could be helping my people rebuild our home, instead, I find myself in this Alliance foolishness!"

"Hey!" A green haired man of Rock stepped forward. "If it wasn't for the Alliance, your over toasted ass wouldn't have anywhere to rebuild a home."

The Ice engineer held out an arm in front of his defender. "Don't bother, he's as stubborn as the rest of them."

"Whoa, hey!" Graveheart held out both hands. "What's going on here?"

"The man of _Fire_ decided to double the energy output of the power core after Bone's engineers specifically told to him it would conflict with their propulsion system," said the man of Ice. "Now practically all systems have been compromised because of his rashness."

The Bone engineer shrugged as if he had no control over the matter. He clearly did not want to get involved in the argument.

The fire head scoffed. "Ice parts, Bone parts, Rock parts! How am I supposed to design an engine core to power half a dozen alien technologies? Why don't we get it over with and use only one?"

Graveheart looked him straight in the eye. "This ship symbolizes the union of the planets of the Cluster. We have struggled together, fought together, we all stared doom in the face and defeated it. How? We stopped raiding our neighbour's resources... we stopped _warring_ with one another. I suggest all of you start remembering that because this ship isn't getting built unless I get everyone's effort. Work it out." Graveheart looked around at all the faces staring back at him. "Is that clear?"

There were nods, many of them resentful.

The Rock engineer frowned, "But sir-"

Jade threw him a severe glance. "You've something to add worker?"

He stepped back and bowed his head. "N-n-no, Empress."

"Good." She placed a hand on her hip. "If I see any of you buffoons causing trouble for the commander again, I'll personally see that my fist connects with your face. I don't care what world you're from."

Graveheart looked back at Jade in surprise. He didn't expect her to defend his position after her spew earlier. Something else must have been bothering her.

"They're just restless," Jade said as they entered the corridor again. "They have no enemy to throw their frustrations at."

"We're supposed to be past that Jade. For years, it was just easy for us to put the blame, the cause of our problems on the enemy."

"And now?"

"I don't know."

"You... don't know?"

"Maybe, this was a mistake."

Jade rolled her eyes. "Oh no. You're not doing this to yourself again."

"But you said-"

"It doesn't matter what I said! You," she dug a finger in his chest, "do what _you_ feel is right. The worlds trusted in you before, I see no reason for them not to again."

He didn't know how she did it, making his worries seem petty like a child's. It were her eyes. Those angry, frustrated green eyes that saw so much more in Graveheart than he thought possible.

He reached out towards her. "Where are you going?"

"To oversee the construction of the new battle moons. Give my farewells to the ambassador won't you?"

"Jade..."

The Alliance needed renewed purpose. Striving towards equality and partnership didn't happen through giving orders. Building a ship from different parts and expecting it to mean something wasn't the way to go. If the Vindicate was going to earn its name, it was going to have to do more than float around space and look pretty.

Graveheart stepped through the doors of the bridge and stared into the landscape of stars.

"And into the raging waves we venture, until the lost are lost no longer."


	3. Planet Haven

**The Stars of Eden**

* * *

><p><strong>Three. Planet Haven<br>**

* * *

><p>The sky was an amazing light blue. White clouds, like long floating rivers, streaked far and wide like a painting. Large, mountainous pieces of earth, floated in mid air that spanned miles across. Rich greens and warm browns formed the tops of trees and steep hill sides. But the serene landscape held a secret. One of pain and despair. Stepping onto those floating islands, one saw the black blast marks that dug deep into the ever thinning layer of dirt. Columns of trees knocked down. The leaves of the ones still standing were withered as the water from the ponds slowly diminished. Wooden homes with roofs of leaves and mud, demolished – fallen into piles of ash and splinters.<p>

The man leaned a foot against the base of a boulder and rested an arm on a knee. He let out a heavy sigh. The grey and white cloth wrapping his body up to his neck were like bandages as loose ends flapped in the wind. His sleek full helmet shined vibrantly in the sunlight. It was shaped like a seed that followed the point of his chin. A gust blew over the edge of the island, causing his silver cape to whip violently. He lowered his gaze to the dark yellow clouds below like how the Maker would oversee his creations. The clouds glowed vibrant for a second and darkened again. A low rumble sounded moments later. _A yellow storm brews at the surface. Oh what strange contradictions this planet has. It is a mystery, a wonder of this system. How long must we batter its floating gems? They will tumble to the ground like bodies. Planet Haven gives its people the wings of flight. A land unburdened by technology. The only ones who found no need for it._

He stepped back from the island's edge and adjusted his wrist guards. He stretched his arms in front and rolled his broad shoulders back relieving the tension in his muscles. He was tall and thin, yet lean. He stood alert as an experienced warrior would. There came a soft flap of wings and then gentle thuds to the grass. He turned around.

The angelic looking woman smiled between her sharp cheekbones. Her skin was dark brown while her eyes and lips were the green of a forest. Her long black hair resembled feathers as they fluttered in the wind. She rested a palm on her cheek as her black wings, the length of her body, folded behind her.

When she spoke, it was like chimes on wind. "Well captain, I didn't realize you took the time to admire the subtle beauties of life."

His gaze returned to the landscape. _Beauty is usually just a mask for what is really there. Pain._

She smiled. "My world is beautiful isn't it?"

He was silent for a moment. "It is many things Levy. How does it feel to be back home?"

"Oh no Captain Ghost." Levy chuckled. "You see, I don't consider Haven to be my home."

"Then what would you call it?"

"Hmm. A place of familiarities, reminders of lost innocence I suppose. A place where I was born, and because I grew up most of my life on Shadow, it will remain only that."

He looked to the ground. Past memories crawling into his mind and guilt grabbed him. _Do you really forgive me for what I did that day Levy? Is there hate under that serene visage?_

She hummed at him. "Are you falling into that pit of despair again? What happened? Did the birds look at you the wrong way? Oh Ghost, you know I can't stand you like this."

He hated that she could read him so well through his helmet. He looked back up and restored his composure. "You have news from the lines?"

"Oh," she sighed and shook her head. "I wish it were the good type of news captain. Our air support is losing over the village of Adon. Two of our Shadowcruisers have been badly damaged, they are pulling the rest of the fleet back before casualties get any higher. We're simply being outgunned." Her eyes narrowed. "They're also getting better at shooting invisible ships."

"So the only line of defense Adon has is the–"

"Barrier."

"How long can it stand the bombardment?"

"They probably assume we gave up on the village already, so they won't waste their heavier ammunition. I'd give it a day to breach. Less so if they find the generators."

"That doesn't give us much time to regroup."

She ran a hand through her hair. "All of this war waging with Eden is making my feathers fall out," she sighed. "Adon will belong to the empire by tomorrow morning, along with all of its resources if we don't figure something out now. And I hate to make things worse, but it's my job. We intercepted an Eden transmission that hints at a spy working inside Blackstorm. If they get a hold of our cloaking schematics, then it's over. We've pretty much lost."

"They won't Levy."

She laughed. "I think that qualifies as a despairing thought. I really should spend less time around you."

"Probably."

"So what are we going to do captain?"

He frowned. That was the question he asked himself every day, every waking moment. His head spun in circles as battlefield strategies won and failed in countless scenarios, but no one was ever prepared for the real thing._ Standing in crap is a world's difference than looking down at it. Maker show me a path. I don't even know if my decisions matter anymore. I knew my life would become the fight, that inevitable thing in the distance. But I never knew it would feel so... soulless._

She stood by his side on the edge of the cliff. "Captain?"

He slowly turned to her, cloth flapping in the wind. "Any word from our jumpy visitors?"

She shrugged. "Still jumpy. Not a peep from them. They think our system has an agenda to blow them into pieces. We can thank Eden for that. Why? Are you thinking about what I think you're thinking?"

His voice was low. "An alliance."

"We already tried that didn't we? They nearly destroyed grumpy's ship when we tried to make first contact. These aliens are on edge. If we're ever going get anywhere with this, we need to show them we aren't part of the psycho marching band. We need a peace offering."

He smiled. "I'm listening."

"Hails are a no go. Their humongous ship is badly damaged..." She paused, squinting her eyes in the distance. "How do my people ally themselves with neighbouring tribes captain?"

"I do believe the leader of one tribe removes a feather from his head, then a feather from his right wing... then a toenail and offers them to the other tribe leader."

"Tooth, not toenail."

"That explains a lot," he said rubbing his chin.

"I have an idea Ghost and you probably won't like it."

"Probably."

"Not here. We'll talk back at command." She brushed her hair back with both hands. "I know you like jumping around mountain tops captain, but please hurry? We don't have a lot of time to work with."

He crossed his arms. "I'll try not to get carried away."

Her grin was smug, and she turned from him.

"Before you go Levy. What did the commander have to say?"

She shook her head. "Cautious sums it up. He doesn't think it's a good idea to get distracted by the alien ship. I agreed with him, but since I had the time to think about it... well now I'm going to have to say I disagree. Oh he isn't going to like this one."

_He's treating this rebellion like a toppled turtle. It's going to end us._ Captain Ghost slowly nodded and returned his gaze to the floating mountains.

In a swift motion, her wings expanded to her sides and she jumped from the edge. She was graceful as she glided down, then sharply ascended high above him and over a mountain peak. She was gone. His gaze moved to the sun. It was making its decent from the highest point. _Midday. Then we prepare and stand against Eden in darkness. May Nightrun's fist protect us._ Thunder boomed from the planet's surface and a flock of birds broke through the tops of trees.

. . .

The ember chamber, proudly named by its builders, was a subsection of the engineering bay that controlled and regulated energy flow from the main power reactor to the rest of the ship. For months, it had been an area of conflict and frustration. Many workers, including the hot blooded variety, would find themselves groaning and asking each other, "Whose turn is it to go down to the asshole of the ship?" Lights shutting off, consoles overheating, automatically sliding doors not automatically sliding open, temperature fluctuations. Whatever the reason was to go down to the ember chamber, there was a sure bet there was going to be a line up. Everyone knew that you had more chance getting your problem solved going down there yourself rather than complaining over the com. Well, simply because the main engineer had turned the chamber com off.

"Confounding piece of molten dung! If you don't _work_ after I replace your power coil for the _seventh_ damned time, Maker knows what I'm going to do to you!"

"Cinder, what are you babbling on about?" The insect antlers on his blue head bent backwards. "I have an entire shield system that needs testing and I can't _do_ anything if it's getting no power."

"Who? What now?" The Ice worker sighed and crossed his arms at the unsurprising response. "Oh _yes._ I'll be right with you." Cinder tossed an arm. "As soon as I'm finished with the other one hundred and fifty requests that came before yours. So wait in line like the others. Or would you rather something like life support shutdown?" He chuckled. "At least all of us suffocating to death would finally bring me some peace and quiet."

"I wouldn't put it past you."

Ignoring the remark, Cinder looked past the worker standing in the entrance way and saw a mob forming behind him, all obviously needing to fix problems on different parts of the ship. A grey robed figure was amongst them. He had never seen such intricate patterns belonging to any of the world cultures before. He tried to get a look at his face, but there were just too many people. _You'd think I was the only damn competent engineer on this vessel. Where is that Char? He's gone from disappearing for a few hours, to not showing up for his entire shift. Off probably getting drunk again. It's the last torch with that fool._

Pushing through the mob, a Fire engineer poked his head through the open entrance.

"Cinder, I've finished repairs on the relays on deck five."

"Music to my ears."

"But... there's an issue with–"

Cinder raised a hand to silence him. "Nevermind. I can't get anything done when I'm being badgered every waking moment." He stood up from his crouched position. "Okay! Everyone. _Out!_"

"But-"

"OUT!"

Slowly walking forward, he started shooing the mob out of engineering.

"So sorry!" Cinder smiled. "But you'll have to come back some other time that is a long time from now!"

"I'm reporting you to Graveheart for this!" the Ice worker yelled as the doors closed in his face.

Cinder let out a relieved sigh and wrapped a hand around his neck. The Fire engineer who had just spoken with him was moving to leave too.

"Hold on." Cinder grabbed his shoulder. "Do me a favour? Find out where Char is and drag his carcass over here." He turned to face the power core and crossed his arms. "I hate to admit it, but he's the only one who knows how to operate that thing as well as I do."

The engineer raised a brow. "Where am I supposed to start looking? I haven't seen him show up for his shift in three days."

"I don't care if you have to look in every single bar on every single battle moon. Find Char before this ship combusts into space matter."

"Hm. Fine. But this isn't a favour. You owe me a week's worth of food rations for this." He turned away and grumbled something to himself. Once he left through the doors, Cinder was completely alone.

He rubbed his soar arms and reached to massage his aching back. Despite his dislike for half the people on the ship, a part of him understood what Graveheart had said before. About why it was important to build this ship. It was also a sure way to show off Fire's engineering abilities as undoubtedly the best in the system. He slowly walked to the ember chamber to carry on where he left off.

_Well, at least I have another humorous story to tell my nephew today. Your all-powerful uncle, used his commanding status to vacate the engineering bay. That rock hound's going to give me an earful for this one._ He picked up a scanning tool and probed the electric panel. _It's all about finding the small things in life to enjoy._

The engineering bay doors slid open behind him.

"You'll have to come back during hours of operation, which I plan on nailing to that door very soon!" Cinder chucked softly to himself. _Wait didn't I lock that?_

The voice came as a calm, low rumble. "We are Forsaken."

Cinder's smile faded as the words echoed against the metal walls as wind would blow through a tunnel. He frowned to himself, turned off by the slight chill that vibrated under his charcoal. He could not place the native tongue. As he faced the person, his eyes widened in recognition. It was the same grey robbed figure he had seen in the mob earlier. A hood protected sight of his face, but he could still make out glowing blue eyes. As the figure stared at him, a sorrowful feeling inside of Cinder started to grow, taking him whole. It was powerful. Vengeful. The figure reached inside of his sleeve and pulled out a small silver sphere. He lobbed it forward and the moment it hit the ground, a flash of red light engulfed the chamber. Cinder felt his consciousness slip away and he toppled over.

. . .

The large, disk shaped craft slowly rolled to a vertical position so it could join with one of the docking ports. As Graveheart gazed at the Aurora through the viewport on the bridge, he was reminded of just how massive the new flagship had become. Less than a year ago, it was just a skeleton of a ship, a bunch of connected panels joined in space. A typical star ship would only be half built by now, but with the combined efforts of all the worlds, this one was nearly complete. The whole thing was unprecedented, and Graveheart got the feeling that its engineers were too busy to fully appreciate it.

A bridge officer turned to him. "Locking clamps are malfunctioning."

"That's fine. Just tell our people in the docking bay to do it manually."

He nodded.

Surroundings gently shook as the Aurora connected. Graveheart grinned to himself. After many days of hard work, he was looking forward to spending time with old friends. Nevermind what the topic of discussion was going to be.

. .

Graveheart turned a corner and saw the back end of a stumpy, green finned creature. His entire body waddled side to side with each step as his tail swept the ground. Graveheart's eyes narrowed and he grinned slightly. He walked up behind the man of Bone and slapped a hand on his squishy head.

"Femur!"

"HEY!" Femur jumped back with raised fists, his shoulder gun took aim. His large red eyes blinked as he recognized the tall man before him. Graveheart predicted that reaction perfectly. Femur was still frowning. "Don't _do_ that. I nearly blew your freaking head off."

"Skittish lately?"

Femur gave him a sideways glare, and they continued walking down the corridor.

"Can never be too careful. Sternum's been planning something painful for me, I can feel it."

"Yeah. I get the feeling he'd rather see you as a paranoid mess, rather than – well, dead."

An approaching figure caught his attention. His hips swayed side to side and his hands were raised as if carrying a basket.

"Hello hello hello." Pelvis raised a subtle brow at Graveheart. "My aren't we looking well toned this evening."

"Pelvis." Femur placed a hand on his hip. "What are you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious? My dear friends Cryos, Tekla and princess Zera have come back from a long and arduous journey. I simply wish to welcome them home."

Femur didn't look convinced. Graveheart rubbed his chin.

"Shouldn't you be back on Bone scrubbing that throne chair to a shine for my dear brother?" Femur crossed his arms.

"Yeeas... well. I've grown tired of doing his house cleaning." He spread out all of his fingers in front of him. "My hands weren't made for such cruelty." A finger touched his lip. "At least when you were emperor, I was always more involved in pressing matters."

"Uh huh. Realizing this now are you?"

There came a low rumbling sound, which quickly got louder as it echoed through the corridor.

"_Woah!_ Look out! I can't –"

Pelvis turned around and made a high pitched squeal as he tried to shield himself from the fiery blur. The speeding object collided with him, knocking him on his back.

Shaking his head from dizziness, Pyrus got to his feet. "Oops. I really thought I got that breaking mechanism fixed."

Pelvis sat up, eyes rolling in his sockets. He gave Pyrus an annoyed glare.

Pyrus drew attention to the glowing red board floating under his feet. It was small, just a bit longer than the width of his shoulders, shaped like a single flame of fire. He smiled at everyone, placed one foot down from it and crossed his arms.

"Pretty neat huh?"

"Certainly gets you where you need to go in a hurry," Graveheart said. "You made it yourself?"

"Sure did. So what's going on? Ah shoot, did I miss the meeting?"

"Nope, you're just in time kid," Femur said. He paused and glanced at Graveheart. "What's this about anyway? I mean, I know there were some ships, boom boom bang, someone died, Tekla finds out she has relatives. Did I miss anything?"

"Who knows what she must be going through," muttered Pyrus.

Pelvis swept the back of his hand to his forehead. "Such unimaginable sorrow. Oh, how I _weep_ for her!"

Graveheart raised a brow. "Yes, it's possible a number of Tek people survived the destruction of their planet somewhere on the other side of a worm hole. We're hoping to figure out just how we're going to get through it and bring her people back. I'm pretty sure none of our worlds have encountered a stable one, so we won't know how to get safely through it. Tekla's knowledge will be needed here. There's also some hostiles involved. No surprise there."

"So ah," Femur scratched his head. "We all rush through the worm hole, get crushed into oblivion. Am I the only person seeing the problem here?"

"I know it's a risk Femur," Pyrus said. "But she risked her life to save our planets from the Beast, don't you think we owe it to her to try?"

Femur sighed and shook his head. Graveheart grinned to himself, knowing Femur just let his argument fall for the sake of the kid's moral integrity.

Footsteps against the metal floor neared the group and everyone looked down the corridor.

"I don't recall Lord Mantel being on his feet _this_ often. All of this running around is really working my calves." A pleasant smirk drew on Jade's expression.

"Jade." Graveheart rubbed the back of his hair. "Our baby boy keeping you busy?"

"Hmm.. not as much as baby girl I presume."

"Well, girls always need more attention."

Pyrus looked back and forth between them with a baffled expression. The others did the same.

Femur frowned. "I wasn't even gone that long! See what happens when I'm not around to get in the way of you two?"

Jade rubbed her forehead allowing her day's stresses to show. "A few more of the mining drills broke. Explain to me again why we decided to use a moon that has thirty times the density of the other battle moons?"

Graveheart rubbed his cheek. "Stronger? Less likely to explode in a fire fight? I also recall it was you who said that."

"True. But I only went forward with it because you agreed to it."

"So it's my fault naturally."

She smiled. "Naturally."

Graveheart shook his head. "Well, latest bad news on this side. Cinder locked himself in the engineering room. Ice and Fire are basically incommunicado."

Pelvis scratched his nose. "Ohhh... metaphors. Pooey. And I was looking forward to seeing the little ones."

"Let me talk to Cinder Graveheart," Pyrus said, "he's a little short for patience even with me, but maybe I can talk a little sense into him."

Graveheart's nod was interrupted by a deafening siren that filled the corridors. The walkway lights flashed red. Someone yelled through the global com.

"*_KKRRR* EXPLOSION DETECTED IN THE ENGINEERING BAY! LIFE SUPPORT IS FAILING! *KKRRR*"_

Adrenaline kicked into Graveheart. This was no mechanical malfunction. Something was seriously wrong. An explosion in the engineering bay meant the warp coils would threaten to destabilize. He quickly set his arm device to link into the global com.

"Everyone! Escape pods are still inoperable! Make your way to the Aurora docked in hanger ten! Senior engineers to the engineering bay!" He adjusted his com. "Cryos! Problems!"

Cryos' voice came through. _"I've detected some energy spikes. What's going on over there?"_

Jade pushed Pyrus, Femur and Pelvis forward. "Go! Before this hallway bottlenecks!"

"But Cinder might still be trapped in there!" Pyrus shouted.

"Cryos we're losing life support. You're going to have to take my entire crew," said Graveheart.

"_I was looking forward to a welcome back party. Not exactly what I had in mind. Don't worry, I've got you covered my friend. Cryos out."_

"Jade go with them."

She frowned at Graveheart. "And where do you think you're going?"

"To keep her from blowing apart."

"I can be of use."

"I know." He held her arms. "But I need you safe."

She blinked a few times as her gaze fell into his eyes. He didn't want to say anymore because he knew she would argue. Leaving her standing there, he turned and ran.


	4. Ally

**The Stars of Eden**

* * *

><p><strong>Four. Ally<strong>

* * *

><p>The mission would have gone smoothly if he hadn't blown himself up. Maybe not to pieces, but he was thrown across the room and knocked unconscious. His clan would undoubtedly shake their heads and turn their backs on him after this failure. One press was required to activate the bomb, he forgot a second was needed to add the timer. It was so easy infiltrating the alien vessel, he had gotten cocky and careless. All of his years of experience and training. Faith and loyalty. It all meant nothing now because of a stupid mistake. The flames grew towards him, but he did not wake.<p>

A powerful blast hit the engineering bay doors and tore a hole in the center. Two large arms slid through the opening and pulled the doors apart. Graveheart stepped through and shielded his face from a flash of heat. The smog was thick, but he could still see the damaged bulkheads hanging from the ceiling and the ruined energy reactor. A trio of Ice engineers ran inside holding fork like guns. When they fired, a blue and white mist engulfed the flames. The mist seemed to move on its own as it extinguished one fire then moved onto the next.

"Cinder!" Graveheart crouched and scanned the ground. He saw a silhouette leaning unconscious against the far wall.

"Why wasn't the nanonite system activated?" Shouted one of the Ice men. "It should have detected the explosion."

It was a good question. Graveheart dodged a falling piece of metal and dropped beside the sprawled figure. He pulled back the hood and frowned slightly, not recognizing the species through the smog. His eyes slowly widened. "He's Mist." The scars on the alien's face looked like they were purposely put there. Three crescent shapes were branded on his forehead as curved lines fell down his cheeks like vines.

"Over here!" One of the Fire engineers dragged a body from the Ember chamber that was consumed in flames. It was Cinder. The embers of his face were red hot, but the flame on his head was weak. If he had lied there any longer, the flames around him would have consumed the remaining oxygen in the room.

Graveheart threw the unconscious Mist over his shoulder. "Let's get them out of here." The Fire engineer seemed to have a little trouble carrying Cinder. A nearby panel exploded and knocked the two of them to the ground. Graveheart dashed forward and scooped up Cinder over his other shoulder.

"I'm alright," the engineer said struggling to get to his feet. His eyes rolled wearily and he swayed sideways. Graveheart caught him before he fell over. The three Ice engineers were working furiously to cool down the main reactor, but it appeared ready to explode any second.

The temperature was unbearable. Sweat poured from Graveheart, and he was finding it more difficult to breath. An Ice worker knelt in front of him and wrapped a filtering mask over his mouth. Graveheart shook himself and drummed up the strength to throw the third unconscious person over a shoulder. He hurried towards the exit. "Can we depressurize the section and throw it into space?" Graveheart struggled to speak.

"Not a good idea. Emergency seals haven't been implemented. Decupling this section would risk breaching neighbouring sections creating a cascade through the entire ship. Our only hope is activating the ship wide nanonites that will purge the fires we can't get to."

"Then get to it."

The worker looked like he had more to say, but changed his mind and hastily ran out the door. Graveheart's knees started to buckle as he reached the corridor. His shoulders started to burn and tighten from the weight. He closed his eyes, teeth gritted. Every step forward was agony. He fell to his knees. The brief moment of relief on his body made him think he was about to give up, lose all hope. What if he couldn't make it? What if the Ice worker couldn't activate the nanonites in time? What if the ship was destroyed and everything the Alliance had worked towards becomes all for nothing? He shook his head. There was no time for that kind of thinking. His right shoulder suddenly felt lighter. Then his left. He opened his eyes and saw a group of Quarriors standing before him. Three of them were now carrying his heavy burden. Jade helped him to his feet and smiled. If her expression spoke, it would have said "figures".

"Jade? What are you doing?"

"Mayhem, destruction, prospect of certain death. You didn't _really_ think I'd miss out did you?"

"Is everyone evacuated?"

"Once those three are onboard, yes."

"Tell Cryos to undock once they are. It's too dangerous for them to wait for us."

Jade nodded and opened communication to the Aurora. "Cryos. Once the last of my men are onboard, get as much distance between you and this ship as possible."

There was a slight pause then Cryos responded. "_And what about you two?_"

"We've been through worse."

There came an exasperated sigh. "_Very well. Although I was dissuaded from offering my personal assistance, I'm deploying several escape pods to dock with the flagship. Anything goes wrong, you better be on them. Cryos out_."

"So," Jade crossed her arms, "how are we diving into this mess?"

A new voice blared through Graveheart's com and sounded short for breath. "_Graveheart I've manually discharged one of the nanonite chambers_."

Graveheart frowned. "What do you mean _one of?_"

"_There are two other nanite chambers we have to activate. I'm on my way to the one on deck thirteen, the other is on five_."

"We'll take the other one," Graveheart replied. He faced Jade. "Quickly, we don't have much time."

She nodded, and they both sprinted down the corridor as the metal floors rumbled beneath them.

. .

Ambassador Phi appeared on screen in his usual imperialistic posture. "May we be of assistance?"

"You are aware of what is happening?" asked Cryos.

"Yes. Our abilities allow us to detect wave distortions in the ether that arise from heightened emotions."

Cryos had no idea what that meant, but it wasn't important. "We have people on our ship trying to fix the problem. I suggest you and your people move to a safe distance in case of an explosion."

Phi was pressing keys on his console, completely ignoring what he was saying. "Nonsense." His large blue eyes blinked calmly. "I detect a level thirty-nine destabilization in the main reactor. I'm sending a small party to resolve the matter. Your technology is uncomplicated, it should not take long."

"We... appreciate your assistance." Cryos now understood the emotional context of Jade's earlier transmissions. "I'll inform Graveheart that you will be docking–"

"There is no need. Our party has already phased onto the Alliance ship and is now moving to neutralize the reactor."

"Phased?"

"The ability of our bodies to pass through solid objects with the help of our technology. We resort to these measures in emergency situations."

The transmission ended and Cryos was left with a strange feeling of hope and bewilderment. The Mist people appeared to be much more advanced than the Alliance. Whether this would prove to be a good or bad thing was something the Ice king could not be certain of. For now, it seemed, they were an ally.

. .

A giant panel from the ceiling had fallen in front of the entrance and was engulfed in a huge fire that violently licked the corridor walls. Jade and Graveheart shielded their faces from the intense heat.

"Next time, _I_ get to choose the romantic getaway," Jade said.

Graveheart coughed through the smoke. "The nanonite chamber is on the other side of that door."

"And I've got the key right here." Jade raised a large two-handed gun to her hip.

A calm voice spoke from behind. "_Wait_."

A Mist walked through the metal doors behind them wearing an extravagant green colored armor that protected his entire body. Unlike the robes they wore, long strips of arcing metal wrapped his body like ribbons around a glass ball. The blue mist emitting from his skin was trapped inside and created a thick cloud. He raised a small grey sphere that appeared to float between his hands. It shook violently and started to glow yellow. Jade and Graveheart looked at each other and decided it was a good idea to move out of its path. A beam of light exploded from the device and struck the fiery obstacle blocking the doorway. Within seconds, the fire was extinguished and the charred bulkhead had dissolved into metallic dust.

"It is safe to cross now," the being said.

Jade lifted a brow. "Not bad."

They darted forward and entered the nanonite room. The blue light inside flickered erratically making it hard to see the controls.

"There." Jade pointed to half a dozen tubes about the length of a person. The transparent material of the tube showed the faint glow of blue plasma inside.

"We need to inject them into these port holes." Graveheart grabbed one and was surprised by how light it was. With a grunt he quickly pushed the tube into the hole. He went to pick up another then stopped to glance at the Mist. He was just standing there, his large eyes calmly staring back at Graveheart. "We could use a hand." The alien looked at the tube by his feet then looked back at Graveheart. He didn't move. _You can miraculously put out a fire without a sweat, but you can't lift up a hunk of metal?_ The alien's eyes narrowed slightly as if he read Graveheart's thought.

When the tubes were finally injected, an Ice worker informed Graveheart that a group of Mist beings had entered the engineering bay and stabilized the main reactor. Apparently, it was an "amazing sight". With the reactor saved from destruction, and the remaining fires extinguished by the nanonites, the Alliance flagship was saved. Much gratitude was owed to the people of Mist, but there were still questions to be asked. The explosion was no accident and Graveheart wanted answers from the Mist ambassador.

. .

It was bad luck the elevator was delayed due to a small malfunction. Pyrus had no choice but to sit in the only empty sit next to one of the ambassador's hooded guards. Every so often, the guard would give Pyrus an uneasy glace and shift uncomfortably in his chair. Tekla looked at Graveheart who had an expression of deep concern. The time of restless peace had ended.

"Where is he now?" ambassador Phi inquired.

Jade spoke. "Locked and secured in our containment facility."

"I'm afraid your facility is inadequate," Phi studied Jade as if sensing her hidden emotion. "Once he has gained consciousness, he will attempt to phase through the walls and find a means to gain control of your vessel."

Cryos and Graveheart exchanged glances. "He has already recovered but has not yet attempted to escape." Cryos paused. "Strangely, the infiltrator has been cross legged for hours just staring at the wall and has not spoken a single word."

Pyrus laid his hands on the table. "Cinder said he heard him say 'we are Forsaken.' What does that mean exactly?"

Ambassador Phi sighed. "My sovereign had wished us not to involve your worlds into our conflict, but it appears we have no choice." He paused to regain his thoughts. "The Forsaken is a cult that believes in following the orthodox ways of our ancient religion. Highly resourceful and skilled, they constantly infiltrate our government installations to destroy our research facilities. New technologies, scientific breakthroughs, all are reasons enough for them to attack us and further setback the progression of our species. The markings you see on his face and neck are self inflicted scars that are an indication of his experience and loyalty to his clan."

"People unable to let go of the past," muttered Pyrus softly.

"Their primitive way of thinking would only become our unravelling if they ever got their way."

"So they must see our Alliance as a sharing of knowledge and technologies," Graveheart said. "By attempting to destroy our ship, we would have put the blame on you shattering any chance for an alliance between our worlds."

"Um excuse me." Everyone looked at Femur. His obnoxious voice was always able to break the steady flow of any discussion. "Am I the only one worried about these psychotic monks appearing out of no where and blowing up anything they want? They could be on any one of our planets planting booby traps left right and center."

"My brother raises a valid point." Sternum rubbed his chin. "How are we to protect ourselves against this ... phasing ability?"

"We have moved our world to a safe distance from the Alliance for now. We will–" The ambassador abruptly stopped speaking and looked downward. His eyes slowly shifted side to side. After thirty seconds of awkward silence, Phi slowly nodded.

"Ambassador?" Graveheart said looking concerned.

Femur glanced at Tekla and gestured his head. "Jeez, someone needs to lay off the bath crystals." She smiled.

Phi regained his posture. "It is agreed that we will provide your worlds with anti-phasing technology. In return, you will help us in our fight against the Forsaken."

Jade gestured a hand. "Did I miss something?"

Cryos spoke. "We are very grateful for everything you have done for us. We owe you a debt, that is clear, however, perhaps now is not such a good time. I believe you haven't formally met princess Tekla." he opened a palm towards her. "She is the last surviving person of her world that was devastated by an unforgiving enemy known as the Beast."

"The Beast..." Phi muttered, unfamiliar with the name.

Cryos continued. "Although quite recently, we have discovered she may no longer be the sole survivor."

"Then," Phi folded his palms in empathy, "her people are lost somewhere in the galaxy and you wish to find them?"

"On a ship, on another side of a wormhole to be precise," said Tekla.

"Stable wormholes are indeed a rare phenomenon," Phi said. "Where exactly is this one located?"

Tekla reached for a device at her side. She was surprised at the ambassador's openness towards the situation. They seemed like such a self serving race, cold hearted. Judging other people intentions wasn't something she did well, but she was hoping to change that. She had to always remind herself to look past the surface of right and wrong, of truth and deception. The past few years had taught her that.

"Here." She laid the device on the table and it opened a holographic, three dimensional grid of star systems. "It's somewhere in this grid location." The image zoomed into a blinking red section and revealed the bluish outline of the spinning black hole. "The sensory data from the Tek ship I retrieved it from is sporadic. I can't get a fixed location. Most likely because the systems were damage."

Phi's eyes narrowed. "No. Your readings are erratic because the wormhole is in a state of subspace flux."

"How do you know?" Pyrus asked.

"Because we've encountered it before."

Tekla's eyes widened. "You have? Did you detect anything... anything on the other side?"

"We spent a long time studying the strange wormhole. Indeed, it is a spectacle of nature. But we were never able to get any substantial data because it would jump to another location every time we tried to send a probe though it." His gaze lowered. "We tried to stabilize it, prevent it from jumping. It did not end well." He was silent for a moment, falling into a similar trance as before. He frowned and the expression slowly faded. "We will help you find a way to traverse the wormhole. Perhaps with our combined efforts we will be successful. There is still the concern regarding the Forsaken. Our cooperation will only further aggravate them."

"Then you will have the help of my Quarriors," Jade said.

"The people of Fire will do their part."

"It seems we require each other's assistance," Graveheart said. "If it's alright, I'd like to try to talk to the Mist prisoner again before we release him to you."

Phi's gaze lingered over him and he gave a nod. "As you wish."

There was talk as people left the briefing room. A new sense of purpose was restored to the Alliance, one that hadn't been felt since the war of the planets.

. .

Tekla returned to the Aurora's engineering room, a comforting atmosphere for her mind. Much work had to be done and she didn't really know where to begin.

"Voxx, upload the anti-phase shield schematics ambassador Phi gave us to the main computer."

The floating sphere plugged itself into the computer port. "_Uploading._"

She rested her chin in her palms. Her large eyes blinked. _Are you there father? Did you survive afterall? The Salvation was the royal ship, they would have found a way to get you onboard. Am I being too hopeful? What if I am just setting myself up for disappointment?_

The engineering bay doors slid open and Graveheart walked through. "Figured you'd be working instead of resting."

She laid her palms on her lap and smiled. "Rest, at a time like this?"

"I've been talking to Phi. He's very adamant about not allowing anyone to meet Mist's sovereign. Don't you find it a bit strange to be allied with a world but still have yet to meet its ruler?"

"Perhaps, but I find many of the customs on your worlds strange as well. What else did Phi have to say?"

"He's going to send one of his top scientists to work with you on the wormhole. They have a ship that's specially equipped to analyze these sorts of things. The rest of us will be keeping the Forsaken at bay. We can't afford to have another incident like before. We need to install the anti-phasing shields around our ships and the telepads to our world engines as soon as possible. Phi is working on getting us intel on the location of the Forsaken base."

"Graveheart." She held the side of her arm and felt her emotions start to surface. "If we do make it through the wormhole –"

"_When_ we make it through."

"I do not know what to expect." The words sounded silly to her. Of course no one knew what to expect. "I mean I do not know if I will be..."

Graveheart knelt down in front of her. "Hey. Just let me handle everything. It'll be fine." He smirked. "I think I've gotten used to it." There was no spite in his words.

The corners of her mouth sagged slightly. She didn't want him to feel like he owed her anything. Those years had forced Graveheart to change into someone he did not think he could be, and now that he was that person, a part of himself was left behind. The part that took him a step back before taking two forward. It had been more of an asset than anyone realized.

"What if–"

Graveheart laid a hand on her shoulder. "No more what ifs. No more worrying. Whatever we face out there, we face together."

A part of her wanted to listen to him, but how could she? The thought of finding herself all alone again if her hopes shattered was something too much to bare. She weakly smiled and gave a nod. "You better get going. There are many important things to do." He returned the nod.

The doors closed behind him and she was left to her thoughts once more. The metal plating of the engineering room blurred, and a distance tree surrounded by a field of dirt appeared in her mind. The stranger's face was dark, she could not completely remember it.

"Exquisite is it not?"

Tekla frowned. "It is dying."

He laughed softly. "Being around these ever dwindling forests, I have developed a unique fondness for them. Both in their lushness, and in their final days before death."

She shied away from his smile. "They infringe on our cities. Their organic structures are opposite to our own."

"Does that mean they do not have a place on this world? Should opposites not exist because one opposition demands it? We should live in harmony with nature. As night and day. As fire and water."

She had never met anyone like him before. A few more hours talking with him would have no doubt intrigued her, but the day was getting late.

"I must go now. I am expected at the palace."

The images faded from her mind, and she found herself staring at a computer screen. _I regret now, not asking for his name_.

"_Shall I run the data analysis?_"

She focused her gaze on the information in front of her. "Yes Voxx. Let us begin. We have a lot of work to do."


	5. The Exposed Side

**The Stars of Eden  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Five. The Exposed Side<br>**

* * *

><p>He was in same the position he had been in for the past twelve hours. Cross-legged, palms in his lap and eyes shut. Cryos got the feeling the prisoner would rather starve to death than engage in conversation. His insect eyes slowly blinked and he crossed his arms. He had never seen such discipline. They were fanatics with a unified goal, and on top of that, they were far more technologically advanced. Cryos raised a small square device and studied it. It had engravings that matched those on the Mist transport ships.<p>

"Care to tell me what this is?" Cryos asked, not expecting a reply. There wasn't. "I found it in the engine room wreckage where we found you. A controlling device of some sort?" He looked back at the prisoner. "Hm."

Cryos walked up to the prison control panel and turned off the energy field around the prisoner's cell. With another button, the cell doors opened. Cryos waited for a reaction, but none came. He slowly walked up to the cell and stood before him.

"I see no point in barricading you if you're able to break through anyway." He paused. "So why haven't you?" Though he was not sensing hostility from the alien, he was ready to grab the weapon on his back if he had to.

The prisoner's eyes opened and he tilted his head up to meet Cryos' gaze. The Ice king remained still.

"It is a system's disruptor that was used to disable your nanonite system." The Mist spoke in a monotone yet powerful voice. Mature and precise.

Cryos opened his mouth to ask what his intentions were but stopped. He decided it was better to use a non accusative strategy. "You may call me Cryos." He held out a palm. "And you are?"

There was a long silence. He slowly got to his feet and turned his back to Cryos. "Avhar Silix. Well," he lowered his head. "It is just Silix now. My title is lost."

Cryos eyed him curiously. "Your... title. Given to you by your religious leaders."

He swung around, eyes narrowed. "What other details has the _ambassador_ fed you?"

Cryos was taken off guard by the bitterness. He brought his fingertips together. "Ambassador Phi tells us that you attack government installations and sabotage your own people's technological progress."

The drop in Silix's gaze was barely noticeable. He turned his back again and paced forward.

His blue head tilted. "So... that part _is_ true then. Forgive my observation, but isn't it a little hypocritical to be using these," he held up the square device, "advanced instruments yourselves?"

His voice came softly. "We do what we must to stop them. Unlike the sovereign and his followers, we are aware of our own _limitations_."

Cryos blinked. "Limitations?"

Silix faced him, the wrinkles of his features showing his age. "Your people have some concept of a great being? An explanation for the unknown?"

Cryos stared for a moment then slowly nodded.

"Our people believe some things should remain sacred – untouched by our curiosities and greedy exploitations. To learn of our Maker's methods is to defy and diminish his name. Your alliance provides an opportunity for our government to fulfill that terrible end."

Cryos raised his chin in understanding. He could have spoken his mind on the matter, but he did not want to engage in a pointless debate. "Could you be more specific. How does our alliance threaten your people?"

"Your planetary world engines. It is believed that inside each engine room, there is a record that keeps track of the planet's entire history, including its creation."

"We've discovered no such records," Cryos said in intrigue. "But then again, much of the planet's internal systems remain a mystery to us."

"The data tracks are encoded in an ancient language. Long ago, our ancestors did as much damage to the engine room on our planet as they could in order to destroy control of the world engines. In their attack, they had unknowingly corrupted a huge database of memory that has since been incomprehensible. It was a bittersweet victory since they were obviously unsuccessful in accomplishing their main goal." His eyes lowered to the device in Cryos' hand. "If I had completed my mission, planet Mist would be travelling alone once more, its knowledge kept at bay."

"You were going to leave Mist technology on the flagship to frame your government. Most likely _this_ piece of technology. But you were caught in the explosion."

The Mist was silent. His expression torn between sadness and anger.

Cryos slowly stepped forward. "If we are your enemy, then why are you telling me all of this?"

Silix's eyes seemed to glimmer as he stared at Cryos. His strained expression slowly faded away until it was calm. The Ice king wondered what the Mist saw in him.

Silix finally spoke. "You misunderstand. Our concern is only with our people."

Cryos frowned. "I'm afraid endangering the life of my people and that of my friends' _does_ concern us."

The Mist's expression was unchanged. He opened his mouth to speak, but he was interrupted by a grey cloud that appeared beside him. A hooded figure came through the cloud, wearing a robe similar Silix's. He grabbed Silix's arm. Cryos reached back for his weapon and took aim but their bodies had already dissolved away.

. . .

The ground was a flat crystal blue, while a clear sky hung above. It was a perfect location to practice in solitude. Away from the palace and its distractions, with the exception of her sparring partner, who was predictably quiet and obedient.

Princess Zera raised her staff horizontally in the air to block his downward swing. She planted her feet firmly and stiffened her arms to absorb the incoming blow. The strike landed on her staff like a feather.

Zera looked up at the guard and frowned. "_What_ was that?"

The guard blinked with an expression of subtle surprise.

"You call that an attack?" She groaned and knocked his weapon away. "How do you expect me to fight like a warrior if you're going to keep treating me like a child?"

"My apologies princess. I will...swing harder."

"Just pretend I'm a Beast drone attacking you or something. Don't be afraid to use all of your strength."

He nodded and they returned to their ready positions. The guard stepped forward and lunged for a poke attack. Zera parried it to her right and swung the far end of her staff at his ribs. Her eyes flashed as her staff hit nothing but air as the guard ducked. His staff spun around and flew at her legs. He stopped his attack in mid air, giving her time to parry and strike him on the arm.

He slowly rose and stepped back. "Well done princess."

She sighed and crossed her arms. "I won't be half the warrior Jade is at this rate."

"Not when you're a quarter her size."

Zera raised a brow and spun around at the familiar voice. Pyrus stepped down from his hover board and kicked it up to his hand. "So _this_ is where you've been."

She sighed again. She could tell from his stupid grin that he was ready for their usual exchange of insults. "Yes, you found me. Now if you don't mind, I'm a little busy." She flicked a hand. "Shoo."

"I have to admit I'm a little surprised to see you taking the initiative to practice on your own without me or Jade. You're serious about this, aren't you?"

A little surprised by his reply, she placed a fist on her hip. "Of course I'm serious. I'm not doing this for fun lava brain." She paused, suddenly realizing he was looking for her. A friendly visit perhaps. Her voice came gentler. "Why are you on Ice anyway?"

"To help install the phase shields around the engine portals of course."

"Oh." Her eyes lowered. "Right."

"Yeah." He crossed his arms. "I thought you'd be interested in participating in current events involving your planet since you _are_ going to be queen someday, right? Seems like you're more interested in beating people of the head with that stick."

"What's that supposed to mean?" she snapped. "You don't think I care about my planet or my people do you? Think I'm just some naive child enthralled by the excitement of battle." She turned her back on him and looked at the guard who was steadily watching them. "Don't you see Pyrus? I could do so much more for my people if I learned how to fight and stand my ground." She slowly faced Pyrus. "More than I ever could by just sitting on a throne."

His grin faded, empathy showing in his eyes.

"I was so helpless when that alien shipped attacked us." She thought back to that moment. The terror on Tekla's face – on her father's. It mirrored her own. "Pyrus. I was too scared to help that poor pilot. Too frozen to do _anything_."

"It wasn't...there was nothing you could have done Zera."

Her eyelids lowered, and she looked sideways. "I know," she admitted. She realized she was training – fighting not to improve herself but to feel pain. Pain that she hoped would redeem her weakness.

The guard knelt down to her level. "You have a strong will princess. But you are still young. The knowledge and skill you seek must come to you in pieces. It will come gradually."

She looked at the guard and smiled, allowing her youth to shine through. She looked back and Pyrus, then back at the guard. She smirked. "Gradually huh? Well, I think we can speed that up just a little bit. What do you say Pyrus? Does your royalty have time for a little foot work?"

He smiled. "You're on."

She laid a hand on the guard's shoulder. "Take a break. Time for me to beat on someone else for a while."

. . .

"This is a huge gamble Levy."

She brushed back her black feathery hair. Her green eyes gazed at Captain Ghost. "Gambles are how you change the balance of war captain."

He stared at her through his helmet. She slowly smiled in response to his silence. He could not refute her words. They both looked out the cockpit window of their vessel. A large ship hung in the distance in space. Purple, blue and silver coloured its hull extravagantly. It was shaped like a one winged egg. The wing being mostly silver and composed of long strips of arcing metal that ran from the front to the back of the ship. Despite the black blast marks and venting gasses, it was an impressive sight.

"Cloaking status?" Captain Ghost asked.

A soldier of Shadow raised his head from the control panel. His body was wrapped in white wrappings like the captain's, but in place of a full helmet, he wore a silver visor. "Functioning," he responded.

Captain Ghost stood beside Levy who sat at the piloting controls. He crossed his arms. "When you were talking about your tribal greeting traditions, I didn't realize plucking your own feathers in the name of peace equated to getting blown outa the sky."

"Are you still whining?" She said, eyes still focused on the controls. "If you're having second thoughts, there's always that warm and cozy escape pod."

He was silent.

"You're scowling behind there aren't you?"

"Shut up and fly Levy," he said in a cool voice.

She grinned. "One thousand meters and closing. Doesn't seem like either side has detected us yet. That will change in a moment."

They were close enough now to see red lasers fired from the Eden ships. They were striking the alien ship's hull without much effect. The three small fighters closely resembled bees annoying a large animal. It seemed Eden had given up on the alien ship for now, or maybe they were waiting for one of their fortress ships to arrive. Once the latter happened, the aliens wouldn't stand a chance.

"I think that's close enough," Ghost said.

Levy shook her head. "I want to be sitting right on their nose so there's no mistake who's side we're on."

Their cloaked ship was now sitting in front of the purple alien ship. Missiles and lasers were missing them by meters.

"Anytime now Levy," he said letting his anxiousness through.

"Lock onto the nearest Eden ship and get ready to fire," Levy ordered.

"Missiles locked lieutenant," the soldier said.

"Decloaking...now! Fire!"

Three green glowing missiles flew towards one of the red Eden ships that had just banked in front of them. All three struck home and the Eden ship exploded in a streaking display of combustion.

"The other two are converging!" boomed the soldier.

"Good. Reroute shields to the cockpit. Let them target our engines."

Ghost saw the other two ships approach from their right. They came fast as red particle beams struck their hull. Circuitry and panels exploded. Ghost was thrown off his feet, his body smashing against the wall. His head spun as he looked up seeing Levy in a wild panic, the cockpit window flashed red and purple light. The metal rattled and tore around him.

"_Cloak! The cloak Levy!_"

She ignored his cries, her intense eyes focused – waiting. Waiting for the alien ship to save them. Something hit them hard and the internal power shutdown. Levy's head flew into the control panel, and she bounced from her chair. The noise was deafening as Ghost tried desperately to take hold of reality. Something struck his temple, and he felt the world slip away.


End file.
